Java.July.2017

249 • JUL/AUG 2017
ANNA
VIVETTE
CIRCLE 6 STUDIOS • BLAKTINA FEST • THE STAKES • TOM & JAMES FRANCO

Now offering summertime mini memberships for the whole
family with unlimited visits during June, July, and August
for just $50.
image: Peter Wegner, Guillotine of Sunlight,
Guillotine of Shade (detail), 2008. Die-cut
paper. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum.
Visit phxart.org/summertime for more details.
#phxart #phxartsummer

The Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) is an EEO/AA institution.

CONTENTS
8
12
22
32
34
FEATURES
ANNA VIVETTE
Tuning the Spirit
By Demetrius Burns
Cover: Anna Vivette
Photo by: Bruce Talbot
8 12 22
34
CIRCLE 6 STUDIOS
Molten Glass for the Masses
By Jeffery Kronenfeld
DESERT ESCAPE
Creative director: Mello Jello
Photographer: Elisa Valdes
THE STAKES PRESENT
PROPHECY
By Mitchell L. Hillman
BLAKTINA FESTIVAL
Dare to Dance and to Dream
by Jenna Duncan
COLUMNS
7
16
20
30
38
40
BUZZ
Molten
By Robert Sentinery
ARTS
Juxtaposition at FOUND:RE
By Amy Young
Tom and James Franco’s Pipe Brothers
By Amy L. Young
FOOD FETISH
Casa Añejo
By Sloane Burwell
SOUNDS AROUND TOWN
By Mitchell L. Hillman
GIRL ON FARMER
There Are So Many Things
By Celia Beresford
NIGHT GALLERY
Photos by Robert Sentinery
JAVA MAGAZINE
EDITOR & PUBLISHER
Robert Sentinery
ART DIRECTOR
Victor Vasquez
ARTS EDITOR
Amy L. Young
FOOD EDITOR
Sloane Burwell
MUSIC EDITOR
Mitchell L. Hillman
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Jenna Duncan
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Rhett Baruch
Demetrius Burns
Jack Cavanaugh
Sam Clark
Jeffery Kronenfeld
Nicole Royse
PROOFREADER
Patricia Sanders
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Enrique Garcia
Johnny Jaffe
Chris Loomis
Bruce Talbot
Elisa Valdes
ADVERTISING
(602) 574-6364
Java Magazine
Copyright © 2017
All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part of any text, photograph
or illustration is strictly prohibited without the written
permission of the publisher. The publisher does not
assume responsibility for unsolicited submissions.
Publisher assumes no liability for the information
contained herein; all statements are the sole opinions
of the contributors and/or advertisers.
JAVA MAGAZINE
PO Box 45448 Phoenix, AZ 85064
email: javamag@cox.net
tel: (480) 966-6352
www.javamagaz.com
4 JAVA
MAGAZINE

M
ATC
H
let’s make
pour decisions.
$4 mimosas
all summer long.
(6.24.17 to 9.4.17 and $20 pitchers!)
breakfast 6am daily
brunch sat + sun.
RESTAURANT & COCKTAILS
1100 N. Central Ave.
602.875.8080 | 602.875.8000
www.matchphx.com | www.foundrehotels.com
Social: @MATCHPhx @FOUNDREPhx
THrough Aug. 20 | HE ARD.O R G

LivingRoomWineBaR .com L a S a L acanT ina. com
I

MOLTEN
By Robert Sentinery
BUZZ
Coming off of a recent string of record-high temperatures, culminating with
the threat of a 120-degree day (only three have ever been recorded in Phoenix),
it has been a cruel, cruel summer so far. We peaked out at 119 on June 20,
but that was hot enough—as evidenced by the slew of viral videos of people
baking cookies in their cars and literally frying eggs on the sidewalk.
For our annual double summer (July/August) edition, we’ve decided to crank
up the heat. As one of the top glass-blowing studios in the Southwest, Circle
6 Studios is a veritable blast furnace of an operation. Artists from around the
U.S. and abroad come to use their impressive equipment, including a wall of
glowing furnaces ready to transform silica sand into the consistency of honey
at above 2000 degrees Fahrenheit.
One of the interesting aspects of Circle 6 is their successful outreach program
that brings in everyday people and teaches them the art of glassblowing.
They do classes, team-building events and even host birthday parties where
attendees get to make a piece and take it home. During their “Hot Glass—
Cold Beer” First Friday events, for $25 attendees get to watch national glass
artists work while sipping on craft beer (a different local brewery each month)
out of a handmade vessel that they choose and keep. Sounds like an evening
of fiery fun (see “Circle 6 Studios: Molten Glass for the Masses,” p. 12).
Anna Vivette is a singer who grew up listening to only classical music. Her
father was an aficionado and passed this passion on to her. At 16, she was
singing opera professionally with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. About 15 years
ago, Vivette packed her bags and left Chi-town for the sunny skies of Arizona.
While she no longer sings opera professionally, Vivette continues to pursue
her musical career. Her recently released solo album, entitled Pour Amélie—
dedicated to her now two-year-old daughter—features lush soundscapes with
Vivette’s mesmerizing vocals. She has also started a new band called Secret
Element, with her well-known producer Gardner Cole and renowned violinist
Thula Ngwenyama (see “Anna Vivette: Tuning the Spirit”).
It is not unusual for things happening on the West Coast to make their way to
Phoenix. The BlakTina Dance Festival is no exception. Founded in Los Angeles
by dancer, choreographer and producer Licia Perea, the goal is to bring
together dance artists of color—black and Latinx (a term inclusive of Latino,
Latina and people of mixed racial identities). Local dance artist Liliana Gomez
pitched Perea on the idea of bringing BlakTina to Phoenix, Perea agreed, and
the rest is history. The festival will take place on July 22 at the Black Theatre
Troupe building and promises to be a rare evening of dance artistry and cultural
connections (see “BlakTina Festival: Dare to Dance and to Dream,” p. 34).

ANNA VIVETTE
Tuning the Spirit
8 JAVA
MAGAZINE
By Demetrius Burns | Photos BY Chris LOOMIs

For a singer, the voice is an instrument, and performance involves many dynamics. Though technique
and form are important, cultivating an emotional and spiritual connection with the music is equally
essential. Phoenix singer Anna Vivette has both the technical and spiritual elements, crystallized to form
a stellar singer. She is classically trained in the bel canto opera singing tradition and has performed
professionally since she was 16 years old.
Vivette grew up in Chicago and is the oldest of four children. Her mother worked as a librarian, and her father
as an artist. Her dad was an audiophile and didn’t let her listen to anything except classical music. “I barely
even knew who Michael Jackson was as a kid,” Vivette said. “But I was really well educated in classical
music. That marked me in a really positive way. I think it also cultivated in me a sense of composition and
helped develop my ear even more.” She would often make up vocal melodies to layer on top of symphonic
elements to help her mimic some of the singers, even though she didn’t have any formal training at that point.
This was the beginning of her developing a voice of her own. She also played the violin as a child, which
helped her learn pitch.
When she was about 10, Vivette would go to urban, abandoned buildings or under bridges to test out acoustics
and experiment as a performer. During these experiences Vivette was both the audience and the performer,
and she got to feel the more spiritual dimensions of singing. “It’s not that I had any irreverence for the
audience, it’s just that there was something about discovering a place with my voice, learning about my voice
from that place and also repurposing that place with my performance,” said Vivette. “It became something very
personal and fun. It was very playful. When you’re in front of an audience, they have expectations as soon as
they walk into an auditorium. This urban experiment was as pure as it could be. It was something that allowed
me to get deeper into the music. When it did come down to the time to perform live, I had a more spiritual
connection to the craft rather than having all the technical work.”
For Vivette, singing in abandoned spaces was also about dealing with the self-critical aspect that loops in a
performer’s head when they are singing. When there isn’t an audience judging the performance, the performer
becomes the judge of the singing, and it can liberate them to express more freely. There’s also the dynamic of
JAVA 9
MAGAZINE

ejecting the ideal of what a singer is or what they
are supposed to do that seems to fall away when the
singer and the audience converge into one.
When Vivette was 16, she visited the Lyric Opera of
Chicago to audition as an actress. She landed some
parts and was able to share the stage with famous
opera singers such as Renée Fleming, Samuel Ramey
and Bryn Terfel. Samuel Ramey would give her
lessons backstage after shows. She was able to soak
up a lot of great lessons from the singers, and they
have stayed with her to this day.
After she turned 18, Vivette moved from the suburbs
into the city. There, she met bestselling author James L.
Swanson. “He introduced me to all sorts of interesting
people. I think that’s the great thing about writers,”
said Vivette. “They see the world through this colorful
lens of characters and places, converging them all
together. And there’s this backdrop of a scene about to
play out. That was what was so fun about hanging
out with him. It impacted how I live my life. Every day
there is a scene that can happen, straight out of a
film, if you create it.”
Vivette stresses the importance of surrounding
herself with people from diverse backgrounds. She
feels that this has shaped her as a person and made
her more dynamic in general. “When you hang out
with one type of group, it can make life a bit too
narrow,” Vivette said. “When you broaden the types
of friends in your life, like scientists or historians, the
better conversationalist you become and the more
interesting the world becomes. If you have a lot of
different friends who are educated and diverse, it’s
almost like having a college education in itself.”
Vivette moved to Arizona about 15 years ago and
began taking voice lessons with Ruth Dubinbaum,
a prolific teacher who has helped several students
reach incredible achievements in the singing world.
Vivette originally trained with her about five times
a week, but she didn’t have an agenda when she
first started. She just wanted to dedicate herself to
the discipline and get better. For Vivette, singing is
an athletic endeavor, and in order to keep in shape
you have to train voraciously. The thing is, singers
can’t hear their voices as someone else hears
them. Vivette compares it to hearing your voice on
voicemail. It sounds so foreign. A voice coach can
help a singer in ways that the singer can’t.
“I didn’t have a particular goal. I just wanted to
reconnect with music,” Vivette said. “I wanted to
get into the technique and rediscover myself, take it
to a place where I could be in the zone and get my
mind off the rest of my life and just be in the studio.
10 JAVA
MAGAZINE

I enjoy the work. And having that technique gave me
even more freedom, creatively speaking, because I
didn’t have the vocal limitations that I may have had
before.” Around this time Vivette started performing
at weddings, resorts and special events.
One place in particular that she holds dear in
her heart is Amangiri. The exclusive resort on
the Arizona/Utah border often draws a celebrity
clientele, looking to get away from it all. As part of
the resort experience, guests rode on horseback into
a canyon where Vivette would be singing with bats
swirling all around her. She described the feeling as
almost like being in a Western film. She nicknamed
the place God’s Ear, as she had prayed for a child
during her time there, and a month later she was
pregnant with her daughter.
Despite Vivette’s extensive classical training, she
decided to join a couple of bands. One of them was
called WOMB, an acronym for Warriors Of Make
Believe. While in that band, she met Christina
Cole, who in turn introduced her to her husband,
Gardner Cole, an American songwriter and music
producer who has notably worked with Tina Turner
and Madonna. He and Vivette developed a fluid
professional relationship and began working on
a project that would turn into her debut solo album,
Pour Amélie. The record is an amalgamation of
sounds and styles that stretches Vivette’s voice in
myriad directions. It’s a tribute to motherhood and a
psalm to her now two-year-old daughter, Amélie.
Vivette’s process for making recorded music is a bit
different than when she performs live. She feels as
though she has more freedom in the studio and calls
it a sort of digital playground. Sometimes Gardner
has music pre-written for her to sing, and sometimes
they create the melodies and lyrics together. One
of the key sources of support for Vivette throughout
her creative endeavors has been her fiancé, Yves
A. Klein, the son of the late renowned French artist
Yves Klein. Her fiancé’s art deals with cutting-edge
technology, including robotic sculpture.
Vivette and Gardner also have a group project called
Secret Element and recently added internationally
renowned violinist Thula Ngwenyama to the
ensemble. The music has a wide variety of styles
with an orchestral backing and is generated primarily
for movie or television use. Vivette says that the
creative energy is high between all three, and they
vibe well together. The project has allowed Vivette
to further express her varied range. Going forward,
she hopes to incorporate more work in various spaces
that are abandoned or secluded in some way for
performances and recordings.
Another favorite project that Vivette worked on was
Fabric + Space, held in an unused upper floor of the
Hanny’s building, in collaboration with Oscar De Las
Salas and Chris Loomis back in December 2012. An
improvisational performance art piece, Fabric + Space
took an empty volume and inserted kinetic sculpture
accompanied by music, drums and Vivette’s hypnotic
operatic singing. Vivette also collaborated with the
late Janice Leonard on the Project Red shows. For
Vivette, Leonard was a pure creative who never
rejected ideas outright. She allowed Vivette to share
in a space that was free of judgment.
One of the most important developments in Vivette’s
life has been motherhood. It has, in her words,
broken her—in the best of ways. “It gives a depth
to the work in the sense that children break you,
but for the better,” said Vivette. “They force you to
look at the world from the perspective of others who
come before you. And that, mixed with Amélie’s
unconditional love, for me was something I had
never really experienced before. The depth of those
feelings is something I pull from on a creative level,
allowing me to feel deeply grounded in a more
creative way.”
JAVA 11
MAGAZINE

Circle
6
Studios
Molten Glass For The Masses
BY JEFFERY KRONENFELD • PHOTOS BY JOHNNY JAFFE
12 JAVA
MAGAZINE

The rectangular opening glows orange and the heat causes the crowd, more than 20 feet back, to wince
and shield their faces. It is as if a doorway to the depths has flung open. Specifically to the sixth circle
of hell as described in Dante’s Inferno, the one full of fire, brimstone and heretics. This is the “Circle 6 ”
part of Circle 6 Studios.
In front of the furnace stands John Longo, the studio’s founder and owner. Seemingly oblivious to the heat, he
works molten glass onto the tip of a metal pole, grinning from under his Steelers baseball cap. Longo is more
about process than product. Seeing his face lit up, in more ways than one, it’s clear those aren’t just words.
Circle 6 Studios is tucked in the back of an otherwise innocuous strip mall near the 51 freeway and Thomas
Road. The front third is a gallery, while the rest is a studio, or, in glass parlance, a hot shop. Longo built nearly
every working part, from the furnaces to the iconic red door. He actually learned to build furnaces before he
learned glass blowing, knowing that once he had the hardware he could take his time to master the art. That
was back around 2004.
The next year, Longo was approached by artist Rob Traylor, who worked at Mesa Art Center’s glass studio,
which Longo had helped design and build. Traylor visited Longo’s then home hot shop. When Longo decided
he wanted to expand, Traylor helped out and, before they even had the name, Circle 6 was born. By Traylor’s
estimate, they have taught glass blowing to upwards of 100,000 students since first offering public classes in
2011. While classes and commissions help pay the bills, supporting artists in exploring the myriad possibilities
of glass as a medium seems the studio’s true mission.
Longo is quick to point out that Circle 6 is a team effort, with Jason Chakravarty as one of the essential
players. When not conducting workshops in Turkey, where he is currently teaching kiln casting at the country’s
largest glass and art center, or in Japan, where he was for the 2016 Niijima International Glass Art Festival,
you can find Chakravarty working or helping others with their work at Circle 6 . With a BFA from ASU and an
MFA from CSU Fullerton, Chakravarty is nationally known for his detailed casts and novel use of neon lighting
in sculptures. He’s a driving force in spreading the word about Circle 6 and has invited talented artists from
around the country.
JAVA 13
MAGAZINE

“Glass can be anything,” Chakravarty explained by email. “It is the only material
that can be thick, thin, light, heavy, transparent, opaque, hollow, solid, manipulated
in so many diverse ways and, initially very important to me, could capture light, aka
neon.” Defining himself as an “object maker,” Chakravarty stresses how “personal
narrative drives the finished object.”
This is the kind of art Longo is most interested in, as well, the kind that is concept
and idea driven. While glass art is ancient, the modern studio glass movement
emerged from the factories and into smaller-scale studios and galleries in the early
sixties. Like ceramics before it, glass fought an uphill battle against parts of the arts
establishment that sneered at things perceived as crafty. While glass art has gained
wider acceptance, there are still some who harbor such notions.
Clearly, they’ve never been through the gallery at Circle 6 , where glass art of a
staggering variety lines shelves and tops pedestals. The first piece to draw my eye was
a red and blue bust of blind Lady Justice with a building sprouting from her upraised
elbow like a neoclassical tumor. Divided Ruling is one of artist James Labold’s works on
display. A recent artist-in-residence at Circle 6 , Labold holds an MFA from Ball State
and recently received the Glass Art Society’s 2016 Saxe Emerging Artist Award. Labold
explains that he uses “special blown molds that give a very high level of detail,
similar to casting.” For him, the technical aspects are “all in the service of the
concept.” Broken into nine red, white and blue segments, the Lady Justice piece
embodies the divisions within our justice system and society as a whole.
Chakravarty has work on display, as well. Double Vision depicts a double-stacked
billboard being tagged by two detailed, semitransparent spaceman figures.
It is a combination of cast and fused glass, with metal components, as well. The
spaceman is a repeating motif Chakravarty first adopted when Obama announced
his candidacy. He says it was meant to embody “the familiar compounded with
the unknown.” Restless Legs is from a recent series Chakravarty produced in
collaboration with artist Jennifer Caldwell. One of Caldwell’s famous lampworked
octopuses nestles in a semi-opaque coral form made by Chakravarty. They have a
whole series of similar scenes at galleries across the country and around the world,
some integrating the spaceman’s symbolic cousin, the diver.
The shop is itself a work of art. As you enter from the gallery, tucked to the right are
tiered wooden benches for audience seating. To the left is the huge bank of rough but efficient
furnaces, work surfaces and the assorted tools of the glass trade. Glassblowing involves
the use of three specialized types of furnaces: a standard furnace, a glory hole and
an annealer. The standard furnace contains a reservoir of glowing glass maintained
at around 2000 degrees and roughly the consistency of honey.
Punty rods or blow pipes are inserted and worked to build up material. They are kept
constantly moving to prevent the glass from sliding off. The glory hole furnaces are used
to reheat glass for shaping. Circle 6 ’s unique glory hole design allows one person to
operate them. Katy Czarnecki, the newest addition to the Circle 6 team, assured me that
they are unique and a vast improvement over the others she’s worked with.
On tall metal legs sits the annealer, the third furnace. Usually heated to a mere 800
degrees, it’s used to gradually cool or “relax” the glass and mitigate thermal shock.
Between the furnace and one of the glory holes is a horizontal rack of blow pipes
sitting with one end engulfed in little flames. These metal tubes are used to blow
bubbles into and expand glass. Near the glory holes are a number of kilns for fusing,
slump casting and sometimes annealing.
A variety of tools are scattered on work surfaces and benches. There are the
diamond shears to crimp or cut glass, used for such purposes as folding a trumpet
shape into a flower. There are mashers, jacks and other hand tools for manipulating
14 JAVA
MAGAZINE

and handling glass. On one of the tables are the
dishes containing “color.” These are shards of glass
whose metal content gives them color. Once the
desired amount of molten glass is accumulated,
the glass blower rolls it in the color shards, which
stick to the molten glass like glue. There are shelves
and shelves of tantalizing colors stored behind the
seating area, a literal rainbow of possibility.
As Longo and a number of the artists explained
to me, glass art has particularly high barriers to
entry, including the cost of renting facilities and
purchasing materials, followed closely by the high
level of technical proficiency required. As Longo, in
his characteristically direct manner, puts it, “the only
way to learn is to fail.” He laughingly recalls the time
he hit the wrong button on the annealer and turned
a visiting artist’s works into colorful puddles. It’s all
part of the process: trying, failing and learning.
Katy Czarnecki, a recent Temple University graduate,
moved from Philadelphia around four months ago
to begin working with Circle 6 . Czarnecki met
Chakravarti at a workshop in North Carolina and, as
she puts it, “stuck to him like glue.” She describes her
art as “really creepy body stuff.” Working daily in the
hot shop surrounded by experienced artists, she’s quickly
refining her style and perfecting and expanding her
skills. Czarnecki enjoys how Circle 6 creates work
that is experimental but still able to “get out into the
world where someone will hopefully buy it.”
Quick to deflect attention toward his fellow artists,
Longo did show me a couple of his pieces. Interested
in balance and perception, his recent work has what he
describes as a “molecular feel.” In one piece installed at
the Liv North Scottsdale apartment community, a large
number of glass spheres of varying patterns, colors and
sizes amble along a curved metal course. They felt
very planetary to me, possessing an absorbing visual
depth unique to glass. Most of Longo’s work is on
commission, and he also works in stained glass.
Whether you’re interested in trying out glass blowing
or seeking a unique piece of art, Circle 6 Studios is
a unique community asset, dedicated to pushing the
limits of glass as a medium. Just remember to bring a
sense of humor when you visit, because the one thing
definitely not allowed is an attitude.
Every First Friday Circle 6 Studios opens their doors and
celebrates with a keg from a different local craft brewery, as
part of an art exchange.
www.circle6studios.com
JAVA 15
MAGAZINE

ARTS
JUXTAPOSITION
at FOUND:RE
By Amy Young
Downtown Phoenix’s FOUND:RE Hotel is more
than just a place for travelers to rest their head.
The boutique hotel that gave new life to the old
building that was once a Best Western is home to an
immoderate amount of artwork created by a variety
of local artists.
The work is inside the hotel rooms, it peppers the
public areas, and it is featured in some formal gallery
settings that host scheduled exhibitions. All the
hotel’s artwork is curated by Mike Oleskow, who has
long been involved in the Phoenix art community.
He owned the now-closed After Hours gallery and
served as president of the arts-oriented non-profit
organization Artlink, Inc.
Juxtaposition: James Angel and Jamie Pettis is
currently running at FOUND:RE. True to the show’s
title, there is a visual contrast in the work by the
two artists that is undeniable. A deeper examination
highlights that fact but also offers some interesting
points of connection.
James Angel’s abstract work in Juxtaposition is an
installation of paintings that the artist describes as
“singular works that combine to create a visual interplay
that explores bilateral perspectives of the human
condition.” Angel is a master of minimality. The way
he thoughtfully builds the composition emphasizes the
negative space as an equal partner in the equation.
The results always serve as a reminder of how
important it is to take a broad and rounded look at
any subject matter, in order to drill into the message.
Angel’s work in the show is arranged in groups that
examine those aforementioned bilateral perspectives.
The images that he utilizes range from the human
figure to animals to word phrases that inspire
conversations about how we relate our individual
selves to the world around us. The artist has
expressed that his work explores the future and how
our actions can, and do, shape the unknown. In his
pondering about the future, his work asks us to take
a thorough look at our respective daily focuses, and
also to consider how our concern for the global future
changes as we think about our own mortality.
Angel has been a major contributor to the downtown
Phoenix art scene and was one of the founders of the
collective 3CarPileUp. He has exhibited extensively
in galleries and museums. Recently, his work was
included in the Bushwick Open Studios event in New
York, and he received an award in Tilt Gallery’s juried
exhibition Infinite Possibilities: Art of Tomorrow.
Flip the coin, so to speak, and there is Jamie Pettis’
work. Figurative and bold, it obviously hits a little
more forcefully, at first, than Angel’s work, laden with
subtleties. Many of the paintings are of women, each
exuding a gaze of personal power that expresses
a comfort with the self. Whether she’s using vivid
colors, bold strokes or surreal swirls to create
these subjects, there is no loss in the pervasive
determination that each person carries.
16 JAVA
MAGAZINE

For this exhibition, Pettis said that she “showcases
the female body and the spiritual and mysterious
essence of it, as depicted through color.” And
beyond that, it touches issues that women have
faced throughout time and are still being challenged
by today. “With today’s political and social climate,”
she said, “women are at a tipping point of equality
we have never known before, as well as a
pushback from government and other parts of
society. I wanted to encourage women to be
shameless in their femininity, no matter what their
ethnic background is. Let’s be shameless about the
female body and its beauty.”
“I Am in This with You” is a forceful piece that uses
patches of color to fill in the eyes and skin around
the mouths and noses of the two women who stand
together. It shows and fosters unity as the prevailing
factor, without suggesting the relationship of the
subjects. Pettis said, “It can represent LGBTQIA
pride to some, or to others it can simply mean
human affection and solidarity. To others, this is
Lady Liberty embracing us and telling us that our
freedom and liberty as a people will overcome any
bigotry or oppression.”
Pettis was raised in Holdenville, Oklahoma, and
learned how to draw and paint at her father’s art
studio. She said that Native American culture and
spiritually has helped shape her artwork, as well as
a penchant for social justice. She has branded her
artwork and the apparel line that features images of
her paintings under the name Brazen Wolf. Brazen
means shamelessly bold, and wolf represents
territory. Together the words create the tagline for
the clothes: Shameless Territory. Shameless Wear.
Though the styles of Angel and Pettis are very
different, it’s the human experience that both artists
are spotlighting, especially how actions shape the
landscape, forcing us to think about the parts we
want to play, and the ones we do play.
Juxtaposition
Through July 30
FOUND:RE Hotel1100 N. Central Ave., Phoenix
www.foundrehotels.com
James Angel, Instalation view
James Angel, Colorshift, mixed media on shaped panel, 44” x 40”
Jaime Pettis, Good Grief, (girl with wolf tattoo)
Prismacolor Pencil on paper
Jaime Pettis, Identity Flow, (girl with hand on hip and dark bangs)
Primsacolor Pencil on paper
Jaime Pettis, I Am In This With You, (2 girls/title is in piece)
Prismacolor Pencil on Paper
JAVA 17
MAGAZINE

Photo: Alex Diana
TOM AND JAMES FRANCO
PIPE BROTHERS
By Amy Young
The brothers Franco are a prolific and creative trio.
James and Dave are well known as popular actors,
and James’ career has veered into different branches
within that realm, from writing to producing and
directing. He is also a visual artist whose mediums
include painting, photography and video. Tom is a
full-time sculptor and the director of the Bay Area’s
Firehouse Art Collective, which he helped found.
Over the past year, James and Tom joined forces
to create the work included in Pipe Brothers, an
exhibition of nine massive, carved and painted sewer
pipes at the ASU Art Museum’s Ceramics Research
Center. The brothers have collaborated on art projects
previously, but this large-scale project took them in a
new direction.
The exhibition consists of nine monoliths. They’re
more than seven feet tall and weigh about 750
pounds each. The brothers and an artistic crew
created these giant works locally, at Mission Clay
Products. The Phoenix-based company makes clay
pipes that are generally used for sewers, but they’ve
also provided materials and workspace to artists
for more than four decades through their Arts and
Industry program. JAVA chatted with Tom about some
different aspects of the project, and his art career.
Franco told us that he became aware of Mission Clay
through the Bay Area sculptor John Toki, who had
been involved previously with the Arts and Industry
program. “John had seen a show that James and I
had and thought it would be a good fit,” Franco said.
He didn’t hesitate to take the opportunity. “It was
such a great atmosphere working on these pipes that
Mission Clay provided, in their workspace alongside
their own crew,” he said. “They emphasize total
freedom and trying new things.” The show is also
sponsored by Elysium Bandini Studios in California,
an organization dedicated to art for social change.
They are also responsible for creating the video that
appears at the exhibition.
Tom and James have worked on large-scale projects
previously, including 20-foot by 30-foot murals, but
said there were some interesting challenges working
with these giant pipes. Though they’d painted similar
18 JAVA
MAGAZINE

Photo: Alex Diana
objects in the past, making them into these ceramic
sculptures was quite a process. “It’s a leap of faith,”
said Franco. “It’s the kind of work that you can’t go
backwards on. They only get fired once, but that
made it exciting.” They were thrilled with the results.
“Once the pipes were painted and fired, they all
changed, and it was great to realize the beauty in the
differences from before to after that process.” Some
of James’ pipes were too big to be exhibited in ASU’s
space but will be seen at an upcoming show as the
exhibition travels to Pomona, California.
Franco has a positive spirit about creating art and its
power to bring people together, and conversely, how
collaborations can spawn deeper communications
and foster beneficial relationships. His passionate
and positive spirit is reflected in the work itself. The
show maintains a truly whimsical feel. From James, a
lot of the images are youth- and pop-culture-themed,
as well as including some glazed pictures of his cats.
Dinosaur bones, aquarium dwellers and spaceships
are some of the subjects represented in Tom’s work.
The show has a very folk-art feel. Tom has taken
that approach often in his career, so the result
isn’t a surprise. He often utilizes found objects in
his work. “I see myself as an outsider artist in the
sense that I really relate to inventing techniques that
are uniquely my own, approaching materials in my
own way,” he said.
Franco says he predominately wants to “inspire
people to live creatively and to encourage them
to work together and continue to dialogue about
beneficial projects, in whatever medium they’re
working in.” His Firehouse Arts Collective is
dedicated to developing opportunities for artists,
as well as creating interesting unions so new
things can form. They have six locations in
Berkeley and Oakland, some of them studio-based,
while others are residential. Some of them also
have retail shops. He likes the idea of these
places being “one-stop shops for artists.” It’s not
all visual artists, either. The collective is open to
creators working in a variety of mediums.
Pipe Brothers: Tom and James Franco
Through September 23
www.asuartmuseum.edu
JAVA 19
MAGAZINE

Casa Añejo
Fine Mexican in the Heart of 7th Street • By Sloane Burwell
Phoenix seems to be experiencing a restaurant renaissance. Loads of new
establishments are opening in adaptive reuse projects, saving old spaces from
ruin (which is almost an antidote to the Phoenix curse, where we tear down
anything over 10 years old), or developing mini-outposts of culture and cuisine.
No area is more true to this dynamic than 7th Street, just north of Camelback.
Tucked into The Colony, a sweet suite of local businesses, is Casa Añejo, whose
name is a nod to finer aged tequilas (which you’ll find in abundant supply). While
you might swing by for some tequila, you’ll stay for the food and style.
The first impression at Casa Añejo comes from the hostess stand—a giant
half avocado, the pit obscuring the laptop used for reservations. Charming
hostesses wearing matching necklaces and similarly designed outfits greet you
with smiles. This is a theme at Casa Añejo—employees wear similar shirts,
their functions distinguished by color (bussers one color, bartenders and servers
another), which makes finding help easy. Not that we needed to ask—a dizzying
array of well-trained staff swooped in unsummoned to cater to our every whim.
Their website describes the space as indoor-outdoor dining, which is true.
Sliding glass walls disappear to bring the outside in. Ample fans, misters and
outdoor A/C help you forget it’s summertime. Designed by HGTV star Alison
Victoria, the space is gorgeous. Saltillo tile looks as if it was repurposed from
an old hacienda. Beautiful colored tiles adorn the walls and carry into the open
kitchen. Charming hand lights found in the kitchen reappear in the restroom
as hangers. Wood tables and chairs echo the mid-century elements of the
neighborhood. Simply put—it’s well done and quite lovely.
The guacamole options here are endless. Order with a guacamole bingo card
and stamper—just mark your choices and leave your slip on the table. We went
for the crab upgrade ($1.50), which was remarkable: silky, slightly smoky flavor
with loads of lime, so tasty we eventually ditched the chips for forkfuls of
the stuff. See the menu for rotating guac options. Upgrades range from 50 cents
to $1.50 for crab, shrimp or bacon. Thick, perfectly salty house-made chips round
out the selection.
I’ve never skipped the street corn anywhere, and Casa Añejo’s is no exception
($6). It’s served carefully cut off the cob (thank you!). You’ll notice the kicky
smoke from the grill and love the dusting of crushed Chili Cheese Fritos on
top. The ceviche is top notch ($14). Divine nuggets of scallops, calamari and
shrimp swim in tart, freshly squeezed lime juice, served with freshly made
plantain and tortilla chips. These were all so tasty we made our own little
nachos with chips, guac and ceviche. Please consider putting this on the
menu—just call it the Sloane.
Tacos, in my opinion, are where Casa Añejo really shines. Each order comes
three to a plate. Served on enormous house-made tortillas (sensing a theme
yet?), these aren’t the tacos you’d expect. First—size. They are no shrinking violets.
We were quite surprised when a massive plate of Crispy Octopus tacos appeared
($11). I’m certain there was a whole cephalopod on that plate. The warm, crispy,
succulent octopus comes with excellent pickled slaw and jalapeno crema perched
atop. One of my guests had not tried octopus before. Not gonna lie, she was
nervous. However, these were so accessible and tasty, I had to fight for the last
one. I would also consider buying their jalapeno crema in bulk if they would bottle it
(pretty please).
I have a soft spot for ground beef tacos, and if you’re like me you’ll gravitate toward
the Doble ($12), a double-decker taco with both a cruncy and soft shell, with a
frijole smear. Somehow the ground beef here manages to be both delicate and melt
in your mouth. I’ll confess my palate was a little confused—double-decker taco
screams Taco Bell, but that is strictly where the comparison ends. These slightly
salty (in the best way) tacos feel like a steal at this price. While I loved them, I did
wonder if there could be a bit of hot sauce for a quick dash. They didn’t really need
the heat, but I did feel they could have used a titch of something wet.
I loved the Sonoran Dog ($11), a giant plate of house-made bollio roll with a
perfectly cooked frank wrapped in crisp, smoky bacon. Somehow the frank managed
to maintain the “snap” from the casing, which is no small feat considering the
beans, bread, avocado and crema drizzles on top. I shared this with another person,
and there were still leftovers.
Don’t skip dessert. If you do, you’ll miss the warm, slightly sticky, fresh-out-of-thefryer
plate of churros ($9). Served with three excellent sauces (chocolate, pineapple
and strawberry, which tasted like Strawberry Quick in the best nostalgic way
possible), the half a dozen half-sized churros will be consumed in a flash.
As for drinks—I am still thinking about the Watermelon Margarita ($12). To be
fair, I didn’t think “marg” when I drank this. I was mesmerized by the smoky feel
the reposado tequila gave it. Paired with ground black pepper to cut the cloying
sweetness of fresh watermelon juice, this is a perfect, slightly savory, not-so-sweet
summer cocktail.
Casa Añejo is gorgeous. It’s a beautiful addition to a neighborhood that is exploding
with restaurants and choices. I would happily choose this place again.
Casa Añejo
5600 N. 7th Street, Suite 100, Phoenix
Monday to Thursday 11 a.m. to midnight
Friday 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. to midnight
JAVA
MAGAZINE
21

Desert Escape
22 JAVA
MAGAZINE

23 JAVA
MAGAZINE

24 JAVA
MAGAZINE

26 JAVA
MAGAZINE

27 JAVA
MAGAZINE

28 JAVA
MAGAZINE

Creative Director: Mello Jello
Photographer: Elisa Valdes
Makeup and Hair: Diana Dawn Dubuque
Models: Andromeda Rae, Mello Jello
Location: AC Hotel by Marriott
Wardrobe: Patricia Ramirez Swimwear from
Cartagena, Colombia
Eyewear: Framed Ewe

THE STAKES PRESENT PROPHECY
By Mitchell Hillman • Photo By Jeff Southwick
Sometimes great expectations are met with even greater results, far beyond what you could
have imagined. Now, I’m known for being pretty enthusiastic about what this local music
scene has been pumping out for the last decade, but still, I keep my expectations realistic.
That said, the day I discovered The Stakes’ full-length album Prophecy had hit Amazon, I ended
up listening to it back-to-back seven times. It was maddening how good it was. I didn’t know
whether to dance, laugh, cry, start a riot or run in the streets to express the joy in my veins after
spending an entire day with it.
30 JAVA
MAGAZINE

I saw The Stakes a handful of times this year
before this release, and I could tell Prophecy was
going to be a stunner, especially with the impactful
tune “Unified” bringing down the house at their
shows. Even after four or five shows, I couldn’t have
expected just how powerful this album would be.
The Stakes are Marah Armenta (vocals), Lord Kash
(emcee), ZeeDubb (emcee), Ben Scolaro (piano), Luis
Martinez (guitar), Paul McAfee (Moog synthesizer)
and Kevin Phillips (drums). The record also features
horns courtesy of Alan Acosta (saxophone), Tyler
Bauer (saxophone), Jimmy Barrios (trumpet) and
Danny Torgersen of Captain Squeegee (trumpet), as
well as vocal appearances from Amber Tabares and
I-Dee. Together this crew has made not only one of
the greatest hip-hop albums to ever emerge from this
scene, but one of the best of any genre.
To call Prophecy simply a hip-hop album is selling it
short. It fuses ample portions of soul, jazz, rhythm &
blues, spoken-word poetry, pop notions and flirtations
with rock. This is American music unified—with
clever intellect, introspective maturity and wry
commentary on the state of this nation and society as
a whole. It’s as self-aware as it is socially aware, as
aesthetically artistic as it is unapologetically catchy
and hook-heavy. I may be blinded by its brilliance, but
I have yet to find a flaw across its 58 minutes (if you
include the single edit of “Prophecy,” a bonus track).
This is the real deal—a modern vision in motion by
musicians tapping their collective consciousness and
issuing pure vitality straight from their souls.
“5 Minutes of Gold” ironically clocks in at 3:35. With
a spare guitar riff and some magic out of the Moog,
the show kicks off with an intoxicating mix that brings
to mind Stevie Wonder and his string of perfect records
starting in 1972. There’s an instant groove that gives
a 1970s vibe, exploring an untapped universe rarely
heard in modern hip hop and R&B, with the possible
exception of Anderson .Paak. The rounds created
by Armenta and the emcees become hypnotic as
the song introduces you to the power of The Stakes
2017. Following in its wake is the soulful “Then and
Now,” a song that Sade would have killed for in her
heyday. Once more, there is an underlying current of
Mr. Wonder here—with arrangements to make him
proud. As each movement passes, the album just
becomes more engaging, and the ear is captivated by
the lyrical paintings and intricate arrangements.
When I first listened to Prophecy, I noted the Stevie
Wonder influence in the first two songs, but I did
not anticipate a cover of one of his greatest tracks,
“Master Blaster (Jammin’).” It’s always been one of
my favorites, and 1980’s Hotter Than July was the
end of his genius run, in my estimation. The cosmic
rap that occurs as the bridge here is divinely inspired
and feels perfect in its placement. They have made a
Stevie Wonder hit uniquely their own, and that is not
something that can be casually done by any means.
It’s a standout track and one that only bolsters their
reputation as artists.
The title track takes a decidedly political tone
with samples of famous speeches from civil rights
history in America. The entire lyric is a work of art
that swiftly sums up the conditions of the working
class and their position under the thumb of modern
America. While the necessary venom builds, the
musical backdrop is absolutely intoxicating, soulful
jazz. I wanted to transcribe the whole damn album,
but the lyrics should be heard firsthand, because
they are as important as the excitement the music
induces. The stories told in the verses are harrowing,
realistic and touching, while the beauty of the chorus
provides a stunning contrast.
“Blue Jean Intro” is a spoken-word piece featuring
Tabares’ poetry over a minimalist piano line, and you
can imagine every powerful moment she describes
while the music pulls at you emotionally. Ending with
the refrain, “All things built strong do not fall apart,”
it leads to Spanish guitar wanderings at the start of
“Blue Jean Grey,” a soothing number soaked in jazz
and soul. The protagonist is off her medicine, and
conversations turn to the goddess within that every
woman holds. And while the world makes her weary,
you hope that in the back of her mind she’s reassuring
herself that all things built strong do not fall apart.
It’s about the obstacles a woman faces in the modern
world while desperately needing to release the
divine power within. It ends with a haunting reprise
of the intro. The pop punch in the bridge would make
a catchy tune in itself, but here it serves as an up
moment in an overall outlook that is desolate.
There is something familiar in the groove that
begins “Crosseyed,” but I can’t put my finger on
it. One thing is for sure, it shows how hip hop is
served by original music, made by an actual band
with real instruments. This is where I find the
similarity to Anderson .Paak once more, and this
tune would make a fantastic crossover hit that
could climb many charts at once. It’s got a classic
feel that’s totally revitalized by the call-and-response
connections between the three vocalists. It’s almost
as if they’re exploring different sides of the same
consciousness or an omniscient view of those
involved in a complicated relationship. As one of
the most beautiful tracks here, it could garner them
attention well beyond the world of hip hop.
The tropical feel at the start of “I Can’t Help It” is
as inebriating as a Mai Tai. While Armenta’s vocals
are lush and sultry, the infinite percussion and keys
kind of steal the show. The arrangement, the very
architecture, is as fascinating to study as the song is
rewarding to simply enjoy. Once more the feeling of
the 1970s saturates nearly every golden moment. It’s
damn near mesmerizing and evokes an atmosphere
far too rare in modern music. “Requiem” is another
political number with more samples and a confluence
of actual and synthesized percussion that makes
my head reel on every listen. It creates an anxious
mood, like a movie soundtrack, while it refers to
systemic racism and the atrocities committed against
black people in America, where capitalism takes
precedence over the idea of freedom for all people.
It is one of the most powerful tracks here and is
painted with honesty straight from the street.
“Unified” features I-Dee and was a song I noticed
in their live set above all others. It is possibly the
strongest song on this record in consideration of both
the lyrics and the music and could be as much of
an alternative rock hit as it could storm the hip-hop
charts. I seriously believe that if they release this
as a single, it will take them far. While I find myself
swaying to nearly every song, this one demands I
dance through the entire thing. It serves as a false
finale for the album, but if it had finished on this
number Prophecy would still be perfect. Regardless,
after a few spins you’re going to find yourself
chanting “Fists up! Thank God that we’re Unified!”
After three and a half minutes of it the album seems
done—but wait, there’s more.
The Stakes finish it out with a hidden track. “House
Party” is a perfect way to go out with a bang
while summarizing the band perfectly, both in their
composition, their live show and their album: “We
turn every show into the best house party ever.” And
to be perfectly honest, they do exactly that; they’ve
even won awards for it. The online album includes a
single edit of the title track, which legitimately makes
you just want to listen to the whole thing over again.
And you will.
Anyone that says Phoenix doesn’t have a thriving
hip-hop scene may want to get their head checked
and pick up this album on the way. Maybe they need
to reacquaint themselves with what actual artistry
in the genre sounds like. Prophecy sounds less like
an actual prophecy and more like complete and total
authenticity. Thank God that we’re unified.
JAVA 31
MAGAZINE

GOOD GRIEF
Rum For Your Life
ZERO DEGREES NORTH
The Life of Randy Randleson EP
WEIRD RADICALS
Flight of Fancy EP
Good Grief had a pretty good run in 2015 with their
debut EP and a full-length to boot. Having missed
both at the time, I’d only heard of them occasionally,
usually in reference to a live show. When I discovered
they had put out a second full-length, Rum For Your
Life, I figured I’d give it a spin. I ended up playing
it over and over, with endless attention and infinite
mirth. There are a lot of punk/indie/alternative bands
making albums, but there is something perfect about
the architecture of Good Grief’s new release.
This feels like a complete album, not a collection of
singles or a wayward project that ended up as 10
songs. Depending on the day of the week, I could
make any number of suggestions for singles or go-to
tracks, but the truth is every track here is more than
worth your time. “Nothing Left” could be a crossover
hit, while “You Play a Mean Game of Telephone”
recalls Built to Spill or early Modest Mouse. Even
shorter tracks like “This Isn’t a Freudian Slip” or
“Marla Singer” are buoyant in their brevity.
How do you decide between “Cursed Like Cattle,”
with its near math rock approach to a gothabilly
groove, and the jangle guitar indie pop of the
title track? You don’t have to—just let them play
one after the other like they’re supposed to. Next
up is the mid-tempo punk anthem of “Time Well
Wasted” and the timeless proto punk of “Needs Vs
Wants,” both of equal parity. The album concludes
with the combo of “The Host” and “(I’m/You’re)
Dimming Light.” The former I originally thought was
the finale on first listen, to discover that an even
better ending is the latter. Rum For Your Life is nearly
perfect in its imperfection.
Zero Degrees North first introduced Randy on their
first single in January 2016. They followed it up with
a magnificent full-length called Mandatory Story
Time last September, which I totally missed out on.
This year they continued the story of Randy with the
release of The Life of Randy Randleson EP. According
to the band, “The Life of Randy Randleson is about
some poor dude’s life. It kinda sucks hardcore.”
Luckily, the record doesn’t.
Zero Degrees North are a teen punk band consisting
of Garrett Reimann, Annabelle Hawkins and Ava
Fox, who are making some of my favorite music in
this town. Right from the get-go, you want “Nuns”
to be two minutes longer, because it achieves near
perfection in just over a minute. This is followed by
the grunge revivalism of “Mud,” which is a perfect
college radio single. “The Other Song” is the first
song from the record to get a video, and it’s more
exposition on the lack of opportunity and ability in our
loser’s life. It’s rambunctious and rowdy, perhaps a bit
like Randy himself.
Next they present Mr. Randleson with no semblance
of sympathy, but more than a touch of schadenfreude.
The Elephant Six Collective would have had a field
day with “TeeVee Time,” and someone should
probably get a copy of the record to Julian Koster
for this tune alone. It seems to turn its attention to
the result of Randy’s two broken condoms, as does
“Randy’s Son.” The latter is from the son’s point
of view, wondering about his alcoholic father who
ran away from the family. The record concludes
with “March of the Idiots,” which, after all the
magnificence that precedes it, still stands out as my
favorite track.
Last year, Weird Radicals made their debut by
issuing one stunning single after another until they
had a four-track EP. Andrew Cameron Cline and Nick
Florence have combined their unusual histories to
create songs not of this time: anachronistic odes
to the British Invasion, Power Pop and Freak Beat
flourishes. It’s not revivalism. If anything, this duo
is revitalizing the genre rather than aping it, which
becomes crystal clear on their new EP, Flight of Fancy.
It features six tunes that make it seem like these
guys will just keep pumping out singles.
Long story short, there’s not a duff track in the bunch,
and I’d be hard pressed to pick the best of this six
pack, which speaks more to their songwriting talent
and love of hooks, to be sure. The one-two punch
opener of “Agoraphobic” and “Disappearer” will
make you a believer. Exploring the map of Cheap
Trick, Badfinger and Raspberries from the 1970s
serves them well on their own adventure. Sure,
there’s a Beatles backbone to their stuff, and who
the hell can pull that off without sounding contrived?
Well, Weird Radicals can.
“Heavy Heart” finishes the first half with a slightly
different groove and a buried clap track, a little more
into rock than the first two tracks. Introspective
rock, but rock nonetheless. Ironically, “John Lennon
(Headbangin’)” sounds nothing like The Beatles and
rocks even harder to evade such comparison, while
bordering on post punk angst with a new wave vibe.
“Human Being” returns to indie pop territory and recalls
Phil Spector and Brian Wilson more than anything
else. After all the strings and madness of “Human
Being,” Weird Radicals finish with the indie rock
rave-up “Torches,” which is just waiting for a video.
One of the more engaging and enjoyable records of
the year—pure summer soundtrack material.
32 JAVA
MAGAZINE
Sounds Around Town By Mitchell L. Hillman

VOODOO SWING
Nervous Wreck EP
JERUSAFUNK
The Hierophant
WESTBROOK
Westbrook EP
It’s stunning to think Voodoo Swing has been putting
out their rockabilly variations for over 20 years. The
band that began in Salt Lake City in 1993 now calls
Phoenix home. Last year founding member, singer,
guitar player and songwriter “Shorty” Kreutz teamed
up with longtime member Tommy Collins on the
upright bass and newcomer Walter Spano slapping
the skins for a totally revitalized lineup. The results
can be found on their newly released Nervous Wreck
EP on Chromodyne.
I’m always a little wary of rockabilly bands, because
there are few that are outstanding. Most are just
revivalists. From the immediate start of “Pow! Pow!
Pow!” there is clearly reference to the rockabilly and
blues-rock classics that came before, but Voodoo
Swing makes it dirtier, grittier and more dangerous.
Long story short, I’d choose this over ZZ Top. “I Don’t
Hate You” sounds like a stripped-down period piece
celebrating the joy of curmudgeonly cynicism and
romantic misanthropy. It’s an upbeat love song for
people that hate people.
Meanwhile, “Linda Lee” is just classic rock ’n’ roll
with a bit of a surf bend. It’s got a Chuck Berry
backbone and would be real easy to twist to. Getting
back to the blues groove, “The Cleaner” feels like a
car song, and the lyrics don’t deny it, either. It’s got a
great vibe to drive through an empty city late at night
or out to the desert to bury something. Saving the
best for last, Voodoo Swing ends the record with the
title track, which could work as well on regular rock
radio as it would on alternative crossover and wraps
up this five-track package perfectly.
It’s hard to believe it’s been over a year and a half
since we last heard from Jerusafunk on record. And if
their debut record, Sweat & Glitter, was a full album,
then The Hierophant is a double album. I’m not sure if
there are any other Klezploitation bands in the world,
but if there are, Jerusafunk should be crowned as
the royalty of such a movement. The band can barely
fit on a stage, but I want to make sure everyone fits
on the page: Jessie Demaree (clarinet/bass clarinet/
vocals), Chris Del Favero (guitar/vocals), Elliott Fox
(tenor saxophone/bass clarinet/flute), Ricky Smash
(alto saxophone), Torrey McDannald (trumpet), Isaac
Parker (bass), Zack Parker (guitar), Caleb Michel
(drums/percussion), Jeremy Lentz (drums) and Connor
Sample (drums).
The Hierophant will likely be the subject of numerous
articles and studies of popular music and how
Eastern European Jewish tradition has influenced the
indie scene of Phoenix, Arizona. It’s such an unlikely
setting for such beautifully fun music. There is
nothing to compare them to in this century, and that’s
the way I like it. There’s never a dull moment here,
but more importantly, there’s never a moment that
will escape your enjoyment—even when it borders
on being a surrealist soundtrack to a cosmic cartoon.
This is your perfect album to get weird with all
summer long, around the pool, in your room and most
especially when played for unsuspecting guests at
a party. You will wait with eager anticipation for the
first person to ask, “What the hell are we listening
to?” It’s fun, groovy and funky all over the place. This
is not your grandmother’s klezmer music, that’s for
sure, but this will have you dancing far harder than
that ever could.
Sounds Around Town By Mitchell L. Hillman
A couple years ago when Westbrook released their
debut album, I hadn’t heard of them. Soon after, they
were making waves in the local scene on the merit
of their live shows alone. I’ve been eagerly awaiting
new music from this crew, and they just released
their first record in two years, a four-track self-titled
EP. I’ve heard them referred to as indie, punk, pop and
nearly everything in between, but I’d say it’s safe to
call them pop punk. That genre is problematic these
days, so maybe hyper alternative pop is better. Either
way, this four-banger is magnificent.
“Ordinary Goals” is the opening track, and it seems
pretty straightforward until the guitar bends and they
bring My Bloody Valentine weirdness into the mix. It’s
fascinating and disarming at once. They do it again
later in the song with a run of Sonic Youth in their
veins. There is a surf bend to “Run Away,” which
immediately reminds me of an episode of “The OC”
from 2003. Each song has a distinct characteristic,
but more importantly, each tune treads into
tangential territory that is as unique as it is engaging.
This trend continues with “Annabelle,” which most
notably features a trumpet and steeps in the kettle
of indie pop hook heaven bliss. The EP finishes with
“Anniversary,” which could be a great radio single
with some clever editing of its over-five-minute
length. This would make for a hell of a live-set closer,
if it isn’t already. Not the most consistent record,
but these distinctive vignettes clearly show off what
Westbrook 2017 is capable of.
For more on these events and other highlights of
the Phoenix music scene, check out Mitchell’s blog
at http://soundsaroundtown.net. For submissions
or suggestions contact him at mitchell@
soundsaroundtown.net
JAVA 33
MAGAZINE

34 JAVA
MAGAZINE

Photo: Audrey Pekela
Collaboration is the art of a diverse set of individuals contributing their blood,
sweat and tears to achieve a common goal. This spirit of bridging, or community
building, underlies the BlakTina Dance Festival, originally founded in Los Angeles
by dancer, choreographer and producer Licia Perea. Perea initiated BlakTina about
five years ago with a mission in mind: to bring together African-American and
Latinx men and women of dance and showcase their unique visions and talents.
(Perea explains that Latinx is a more modern extension of the community, inclusive
of Latinos, Latinas and people of other, sometimes mixed, racial identities.)
“I love that aspect of giving an artist the opportunity to create something new. Every festival is a little bit
different,” Perea explains. BlakTina Dance Festival will soon grace Phoenix, occupying the stages of what
some might consider an unexpected venue for a professional dance festival—the Black Theater Troupe.
Ten choreographers from Phoenix will share the stage with five choreographer/dancers from Los Angeles. “My
goal is to grow the BlakTina festival regionally and then nationally,” Perea says.
The spark and a big energy force behind bringing BlakTina to Phoenix came from the combination of
Perea’s vision with an invitation from choreographer and community dance event producer Liliana Gomez.
Some time ago, Gomez watched a video of original dance performances from the 2015 BlakTina festival in
Tucson. She was deeply inspired and dreamed of bringing BlakTina to Phoenix. Gomez reached out to Perea,
and through an initial phone call they shared their own backstories and discovered that they have a lot in
common. When Gomez pitched the idea to Perea to bring the festival to Phoenix, Perea agreed.
With this project, Gomez is taking on an entirely new role. Usually she works as choreographer and dancer, and
for past community performances she has also done some producing. But for this festival, she is 100 percent
JAVA 35
MAGAZINE

producer and fundraiser, handing the stage over to the other artists. Gomez says
that her vision is to have the festival return to the Valley every year. She’s hoping
to meet even more dancers and choreographers of color and trade off who is
showcased each time.
Organizers of BlakTina say they expect a packed house, explaining that Phoenix
has a huge dance community, spread across the Valley, that embraces different
styles of dance. This year there will be two duets, combining the work of dancers
with entirely different styles and backstories, which promises to make things
interesting. Each year, Perea assembles a panel of people who help her curate the
festival. “The first year, we got eight submissions. The second year, 20,” Perea
says, describing the growing enthusiasm. This year she collected between 30 and
40 applications just from the L.A. area, she says. In Phoenix it’s just Perea and
Gomez doing the curating.
Perea is originally from Albuquerque and taught dance for eight years at the
University of New Mexico. She has been dancing and doing choreography in the
L.A. area for the past two decades and is part of the Latina Dance Theater Project
(the umbrella company for the festival). Her idea to start BlakTina came from a
sense that the dance community in L.A. was too dispersed—too separated. The
city needed something to bring its diverse dancers together.
“There are so many festivals here in Los Angeles,” Perea says. But the problem
is that “companies go in, they do their tech, they do the dress, they do the
performance and then they leave. There’s no lasting sense of community at
all. This festival is about coming together and really getting to know your
fellow choreographers.”
Gomez says that in many ways, Phoenix faces the same challenges, and that often
when dancers finish their program at ASU they move on to other markets. She’s
excited to reach out of her downtown comfort zone to the East Valley and find
dancers in Tempe. She has already done some interesting projects in the West
Valley, working with Glendale Community College and Grand Canyon University in
the past year. Those were positive experiences, and Gomez certainly has more and
36 JAVA
MAGAZINE

more opportunities opening up. She has made many connections around town
with various performance spaces and arts organizations. But it is still difficult
for dancers of color to get the spotlight. Coming from her background growing
up here, Gomez says this was something she wanted to take on.
Gomez attended Central High in Phoenix, where she was introduced to dance.
She did not train classically as a kid, but in high school a dance teacher took
her to a performance by Scorpius Dance Theatre. After the show, they went
backstage and met the dancers. “It was all so up-close and personal,” Gomez
says. Little did her teacher know, but that experience changed Gomez’s life.
For the first time, she saw dance as something she could do as a lifestyle, and
even make a living at it.
From there, Gomez decided to take modern dance classes at Scottsdale
Community College. She devoted herself to dance, also taking classes for
adults offered at Metro Arts High School. She auditioned for Scorpius, and
a dream came true: she was selected to be the youngest apprentice the
company ever had.
But Gomez’s formal dance training was almost cut short in 2006 when Arizona
passed Proposition 300, which banned providing in-state college tuition to
undocumented citizens—which Gomez was until recently. Since she could no
longer afford classes at SCC, she decided to relocate to Minneapolis to train with
the famous Zenon Dance School & Company. “I went to Minneapolis to see what
else was going on,” she says. “I feel like going out there really opened my eyes to
seeing dance as an art scene.”
But the winters in Minneapolis were too harsh for Gomez, and she says after
one year she was ready to move back home to Arizona. Somewhere along the
way, she befriended dancers Cynthia Gutierrez-Garner and Brad Garner, who
would become important influences and community connections for her. The
Garners eventually started their own dance company and ended up relocating
to Oregon. When Gomez returned to the Valley, she began dancing, directing
and teaching with Dulce Dance Company, where she contributed for almost
seven years.
More recently, Gomez has decided to go on her own and separate her freelance
work from any local companies. She says she loved working with Dulce, but simply
wants to take things in a different direction. Instead of thinking about dance
connected to one stage or theatre, Gomez wants to take the movement to the
streets and do more kinds of outreach by bringing dance to local communities
that may not, historically, have had access to the art form.
For the past few years, Gomez has been doing more site-specific
performances, activating spaces around downtown. She’s hooked because
she loves the diversity of the audiences these activities have brought in. She’s
danced at Phoenix Center for the Arts, as a part of the First Friday events, at
Phoenix Art Museum and at the Desert Botanical Garden, to name a few of
the most well-known but non-traditional sites for dance. She is continuously
looking for ways to expand the presence of dance into different pockets of
the Valley, and bringing the BlakTina Festival to Phoenix and staging it at
Black Theater Troupe seems like a perfect fit.
The BlakTina Dance Festival Phoenix takes place July 22 at 7:30 p.m. at 1333 East
Washington St., Phoenix. Tickets are $15 and can be ordered online in advance through the
Davisson Entertainment website: www.davissonentertainment.com.
Visit www.blaktinafestival.com for updates and more information.
C A L L I N G A L L A R T I S T S ! !
MESA
ARTS
FESTIVAL
The Mesa Arts Center is now
accepting artist applications for the
12th annual Mesa Arts Festival
(December 9-10, 2017).
Located in the heart of downtown,
the Mesa Arts Festival is an excellent
opportunity for artists to display and
sell work to thousands of visitors
looking to purchase unique holiday
gifts. Artists will be provided with a
convenient option of purchasing a
tent, tables, and chairs, which will be
set-up for them in advance. Ample
volunteer and promotional support is
provided to all artists.
• All artists will be selected through
an in house jury process.
• Only handmade originals by the
displaying artist(s) are allowed.
• Fine Art categories include: ceramic,
drawing/pastel, fiber, glass, jewelry,
metal, 2-D mixed media, 3-D mixed
media, painting, photography,
printmaking, sculpture, and wood.
EARLY BIRD SPECIAL!
$25 application fee
if registered by
August 11, 2017.
$40 application fee
after August 11, 2017
Booth fees start at
$250 upon jury
acceptance
Final Registration
deadline is
September 22, 2017
To apply, go to
MesaArtsCenter.com

GIRL ON FARMER
When my daughter was little, we drove cross country,
several times actually. On this particular trip, we
stopped at a friend’s mom’s house in Boulder to spend
the night. This woman was a teacher and had a small
gift basket with the perfect treats for a four-year-old:
markers and crayons, a packet of stickers and a pad.
There was also a thin hardcover book of photographs.
Each page had a photo with a blank page beside
it. They were random photos with no obvious
overarching theme—a kitchen with a beam of
sunlight, an old lady sitting on a couch, soapy water
running down the sidewalk—nothing outstanding.
But the book became part of our travel bag and made
many car and plane journeys after that visit.
One of our travel games—this was thankfully pre-iPad
era—was to write text for the pages. For example,
for the picture of an old lady sitting on a couch, legs
crossed, staring out the window, a less astute child
might have written something like, “She is old” or “That
is boring” or even “She’s sleepy.” My daughter wrote
on the accompanying blank page: “This is relaxing.” I
knew then that my catlike skills of chilling out had
been genetically passed down. My absolute favorite,
though, was when I asked her what the title of the
book should be. She flipped through it, inspected the
random photos and wrote on the front cover: There
Are So Many Things. Oh, hello, poignant. Indeed,
there are so many things. I was reminded last week,
when I went back to Ireland for a visit, that traveling
is one of the best places to rediscover this gem.
There are so many independent things, with no
apparent connection, except that they are part of the
same trip. I noticed also that the things that struck me
as being noteworthy were not the visits to castles,
farms and pubs, but the little things that happened,
most often in places of public mass transit.
At the Dublin airport, there is a pre-customs area
where anyone with an American passport has to get
scanned and photographed before moving on to the
declaration area. So, it is a rare instance of being in
a different country with a room full of Americans. It
is times like these that really give you a good idea
of what we look like to the rest of the world. Most
people had on newly purchased shamrock T-shirts
and Guinness hats. One particularly loud American
38 JAVA
MAGAZINE

Most people had on newly purchased shamrock
T-shirts and Guinness hats. One particularly
loud American gal had her Guinness hat perched
atop her kinky hair, and her shamrock shirt was
large enough to double as a tractor cover.
gal had her Guinness hat perched atop her kinky hair, and her shamrock shirt was
large enough to double as a tractor cover. She was a big lady with a voice that
can be described as a throaty growl with a southern twang. She yelled at her
kids throughout the waiting area, dragging them around like small suitcases. It
was hard not to notice her, but eventually we got separated in the crowd. I met
up with her again in the bathroom. I was in a stall, and I heard a booming voice
echoing, “If I only had helpful kids, none of this would be happening!” The kids
looked to be about five and seven, so I can’t really imagine what kind of help they
could offer. Not crying is pretty much all you could ask of them.
After landing back in the US I had to take a train from the airport. I had about an hour
to wait, so there was plenty of people-watching. The usual homeless people, buskers
and armed militia members strolled by. Then came a woman with what appeared
to be a blind-person cane. It was official looking, and she moved it back and forth
as she walked. The crowd parted as she made her way through. She sat on the
bench, and then she pulled out a book. This was not a Braille book. She did not
use her fingers to read. I was staring but didn’t know if she could see me staring
or not. Then the train came and a big crowd gathered on the platform. I watched
the fake blind lady put her book away and take out her sneaky cane. Once again,
everyone parted and made way for her. The train guy, who seconds ago was
barking orders, gently took her by the elbow and led her to her seat.
Once I was on my train (not the one with the fake blind lady), I settled into my
seat. After traveling for 15 hours, I was getting grumpy and wanted to enjoy the
silence of the “quiet ride” car, which has rules politely posted that can be boiled
down to: shut up. The teen church crew did not get the quiet-car memo. The two girls
chatted incessantly. They used words like “pastor” and “prayer circle.” It sounded like
they were on some kind of trip where they were going to do nice things for people. I
dug deep and tried not to let their wholesome babble annoy me. Despite my best
attempts, I had to move to a different seat once the conversation turned into a
deep appreciation of one angel girl’s hair. The frumpier girl showered the other,
long-haired girl with compliments for her very, very long hair. The long-haired
girl acted embarrassed over the compliments, but finally relented and admitted,
“Everyone tells me how beautiful my hair is. I always say, well, that’s what you
get after 17 years of hard work.” Somehow she had shamed all of us for cutting
our hair and managed to claim not getting a haircut as “hard work.”
As they say, it’s not so much the destination, but the journey. It’s true. There are
so many things!

NIGHT
GALLERY
Photos By
Robert Sentinery
1
2
3 4
5
6
7
8 9
10 11
1. Taking a dip in the chocolate fountain
2. O von Ordovich and his lovely Scarlet
3. The multitalented Natalie Vie with her little sis
4. Alison hosts a media event at Blaze Pizza
5. Celebrating FL Wright 150 with Oscar and bella Mia
6. Contemporary Forum Artist Grants awards with Rossitza
7. Cherish and Ashley at the Unexpected Space
8. Chef Brad, the man behind Blaze Pizza
9. Bill and Lexie together again at Phoenix Art Museum
10. Getting framed at Framed Ewe Colony’s one-year
11. Debbie Jarson at the FL Wright 150 celebration

12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26
27 28 29
12. Dynamic duo at Cool Off in Style
13. Buying art at {9} to support Laura Dragon at {9} Gallery
14. Aileen, Rafael and Ashley at {9}
15. Mary Meyer with her work at Phoenix Art Musuem
16. Ben and Chelsea and Unexpected Art Gallery
17. Lee snapping me, snapping you
18. Genuine Concepts posse at the Vig McDowell Mountain opening
19. Dana and pal at the new Vig opeining
20. Lauren Lee’s donation for “Heart of the Dragon” benefit
21. Vig McDowell Mountain grand opening
22. “Heart of the Dragon” benefit for Laura
23. The amazing Laura Dragon and her son Trevor
24. Little back dress girls
25. FL Wright 150 at the David & Gladys Wright House
26. 2017 Contemporary Forum grant recipient Laura Spalding Best
27. Top architects Will Bruder and Wendell Burnette
28. “Heart of the Dragon” at {9}
29. Double fisted at Cool Off in Style

30 31
32 33 34
35 36
37 38
39
40 41
42 43 44
45 46
47
30. Saskia at the 2017 C.F. Grant awards
31. Hot, hot, hot at Cool Off in Style
32. Leggy babe at Unexpected Art Gallery
33. Parasol pair at the David Wright House
34. Jacob Meders and David Emitt Adams and his work at PAM
35. Smile your on JAVA camera
36. Inspired Sugar ladies at Cool Off in Style
37. FL Wright 150 commemorative shirts by State 48
38. Vitani Martini crew in the house
39. Stogie time with these babes
40. Shaun and Chad from For the People
41. All dressed in black, black, black
42. Dave Forman the man behind Cool Off in Style
43. DJ duo at Unexpected
44. Raffle ticket babe at Framed Ewe/Phx Gen one-year
45. Shades of red at Oscar’s birthday bash
46. More raffle tickets with these dudes
47. Crown Royal in the house

48 49
50 51 52
53 54
55 56
57
58 59
60
61
62
63
64 65
48. Zuri and Alejandra at Abloom Salon
49. Chelsea does an ice-luge shot
50. Big sunglass blondes
51. Fiancé and fiancée
52. SunUp Brewing at Framed Ewe/Phoenix General
53. Stylish duo at Framed Ewe at the Colony
54. Tic tac toe
55. Cool Off in Style party at Unexpected
56. Bad ass shades crew at Framed you
57. Megan and Titus
58. Birthday boy bon vivant Oscar De Las Salas
59. Mello Jello lap dance with Scarlet
60. Phoenix General one-year celebration
61. Grand Canyon brew crew at Cool Off in Style
62. Oscar’s birthday bash attendees
63. Women with hats at PAM
64. Audrey and pal at Framed Ewe
65. Mike and Michelle at Unexpected

66 67 68
69
70
71
72 73
74 75
76 77 78
79 80
81 82
83
66. Framed year anniversary party with Christy
67. Mia Inez Adams MCs at Framed Ewe/Phoenix General
68. Phoenix General’s one-year fete
69. Oscar’s birthday bash at AZ88
70. Fun and booze at Framed Ewe’s anniversary
71. Jeremy, Vanessa and Christopher with the mystery lady
72. Framed Ewe fun with Margaree and pal
73. Palabra people in the house
74. All together now for Oscar
75. Crown Royal Reserve sampling
76. Framed Ewe/Phoenix General one-year at The Colony
77. Birthday girl gets a surprise gift at Unexpected
78. Cute couple at Framed Ewe
79. Cherish in the cocktail zone
80. Cheers to this pretty pair
81. Summer solstice at Burton Barr Central Library
82. Keyboard wizard at Phoenix General
83. Roland Hill exhibition at Unexpected Art Gallery

w w w . f r a mwww.framedewe.com e d e w e . c o m | :: www.phxgeneral.com
w w w . p h x g e n e r a l . c o m
BEST
EYEWEAR
FRAMED EWE
O P T I C A L
O P T I C A L
BEST NEW
BOUTIQUE
MEN’S & WOMEN’S APPAREL | GIFT & HOME
Phoenix THE COLONY General & | Framed 5538 Ewe N. are 7th located Street, at 5538 Suite N. 7th Street, 120, Suite Phoenix, 120, Phoenix, Arizona Arizona 85014